MUSIC

Austin's One-2-One Bar will live on with new ownership

Austin 360

One-2-One Bar moved to its South Lamar Boulevard location in 2012 after eight years downtown.

After its owners announced in August that they were putting the business up for sale, South Lamar Boulevard music venue One-2-One Bar connected with new ownership in late 2020 and now plans to reopen at an as-yet undetermined date, former co-owner Gregg Ware confirmed last week.

The new owner is Flip Lockhoof, who owns the southwest Austin sports bar FlipSide. Lockhoof took over ownership of the venue in November.

One-2-One has remained closed because of the coronavirus pandemic but recently resumed occasional livestream performances from its stage, a practice it had begun last year under owners Gregg and Destinee Ware.

"We got very fortunate that he wanted to buy the place, and that he wants to keep it almost exactly the same," Gregg Ware said Friday.

Gregg Ware at One-2-One Bar in August 2020. Ware and his wife, Destinee Ware, recently sold the south Austin music venue to a new owner.

He added that Lockhoof has plans to add food and apply for a restaurant license, an action that other local venues including Antone's and Sagebrush took last year to reopen under regulations that allow more leeway for restaurants than bars.

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On Sunday, a post to the One-2-One Facebook page confirmed details about a reopening date for food service, starting Feb. 13. "Live music will be returning soon but for now you can enjoy a drink, try our sandwiches, meet the new owner, and see some familiar faces," the post reads.

Gregg Ware said that Lockhoof plans to keep him on board as live music booker: "He asked me to stay on indefinitely to help maintain the relationships that Destinee and I have created over 17 years. And he's bringing back the majority of my staff."

That includes sound engineer Curt Ganem, who was integral in transitioning the club to ticketed livestream events after the pandemic hit. Three are scheduled for this month: Cari Hutson & Good Company play a Janis Joplin tribute set at 8 p.m. Tuesday, followed by the Chris Beall Band on Jan. 29 and the Reverent Few and Jo James on Jan. 30.

Before the sale to Lockhoof, One-2-One had received a $40,000 grant from the Austin Small Business Relief program, which helped them pay back rent to the building's owner. "That was the only way we could make this deal work," Ware said.

The venue may be eligible for further funding under Lockhoof's ownership via recently enacted city and federal COVID-19 relief programs.